Cloth bolt holder

ABSTRACT

A holder for holding a bolt of cloth in an upright display position on a horizontal support, the holder being formed of a single length of relatively stiff, resilient wire bent on itself to form an acute angle whereby the sides of the angle constitute a pair of legs which lie in the same plane and which are adapted to be inserted endwise into a bolt of cloth between the layers of cloth and the mandrel for supporting the bolt. These legs have means integrally formed on their free ends engageable with the support for holding the holder on the support, for preventing tipping of the holder laterally with respect to the plane of the legs, for permitting angling of the holder relative to the support, and for permitting sliding movement of the holder lengthwise of the support.

United States Patent [1 1 Kreitzburg CLOTH BOLT HOLDER [75] Inventor:Oliver Dean Kreitzburg, Glencoe,

- [73] Assignee: Fabricmaster, Inc, St. Louis, Mo.

[22] Filed: Aug. 23, 1971 121] Appl. No.: 173,858

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,033,338 7/1953 France 248/302 1 June19, 1973 Primary Examiner-Roy D. Frazier Assistant ExaminerThomas J.Holko Attorney-Koenig, Senniger, Powers & Leavitt [5 7] ABSTRACT Aholder for holding a bolt of cloth in an upright dis play position on ahorizontal support, the holder being formed of a single length ofrelatively stiff, resilient wire bent on itself to form an acute anglewhereby the sides of the angle constitute a pair of legs which lie inthe same plane and which are adapted to be inserted endwise into a boltof cloth between the layers of cloth and the mandrel for supporting thebolt. These legs have means integrally formed on their free endsengageable with the support for holding the holder on the support, forpreventing tipping of the holder laterally with respect to the plane ofthe legs, for permitting angling of the holder relative to the support,and for permitting sliding movement of the holder lengthwise of thesupport.

4 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This inventionrelates to a holder for a bolt of cloth, and more particularly to such aholder for holding a bolt of cloth in an upright display position.

The invention involves an improvement on the bolt holder shown in thecoassigned U.S. Pat. No. 3,272,345 which has a pair of legs formed of asingle piece of wire, with an inwardly facing, channel-shaped footwelded to the lower end of each leg, these feet being slidablyengageable with the front and back edges of a support (or shelf) forholding the bolt holder in an upright position in which the plane of thelegs is at right angles to the edges of the support. Bolts of cloth areheld in an upright position by these bolt holders by inserting the wirelegs into the end of a bolt of cloth between the layers of cloth and themandrel around which the cloth is wrapped. Yard goods retailers,however, may wish to display the bolts of cloth in different positionsto more readily attract a customer's attention. Although thechannel-shaped feet permit the bolt holders to be moved lengthwise alongthe support to vary the spacing between the various bolt holdersthereon, they do not permit the plane of the legs to assume any positionother than one generally at right angles to the edges of the support,thus limiting the mode of display. Furthermore, the channel-shaped feetrequire a separate and costly manufacturing operation (i.e., welding) tosecure them to the legs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Among the several objects of this invention maybe noted the provision of a formed wire bolt holder such as abovedescribed which has mounting feet integrally formed on the lower ends ofits legs; the provision of such a bolt holder which is slidablyengageable with two oppositely facing edges of support means; theprovision of such a bolt holder which may be positioned diagonally withrespect to the support means as well as perpendicularly to the supportmeans for varying the vertical display position of the bolt of clothheld thereon; and the provision of such a bolt holder which is ofone-piece construction and of low cost.

In general, a bolt holder of this invention for holding bolts of clothin an upright display position on horizontal support means is formed ofa single single length of relatively stiff, resilient wire bent onitself to have two legs at an acute angle to one another substantiallyin the same plane, the legs constituting the sides of the angle, andhaving a bent portion interconnecting the two legs constituting thevertex of the angle. Each leg has a foot integrally formed at its lowerend from the length of wire, each foot being slidably engageable withone of two oppositely facing edges of the support mans for holding thebolt holder on the support means in a substantially vertical plane, forpreventing tipping of the bolt holder laterally with respect to theplane of the legs, and for permitting angling of the bolt holder tochange the orientation of the plane of the legs relative to the supportmeans. Each of these feet comprises a first portion of the wire bent toextend out from the plane of the legs and engageable with the uppersurface of the support means, a second portion of the wire bent toextend from the outer end of said first portion to the edge of thesupport means, a third portion of the wire bent to extend down from theouter end of the second portion and engageable with one of theoppositely facing edges of the support means, and a lower portion of thewire extending back from the lower end of the third portion to extendback under and to be engageable with the lower surface of the supportmeans. Other objects and features of this invention will be in partapparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective of two boltholders of this invention mounted on a horizontal support with one boltholder being diagonally oriented relative to the edges of the supportand with the other bolt holder being oriented perpendicularly to theedges of the support{ FIG. 2 is a plan of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a vertical section on line 3-3 of FIG. 2 with one of the boltholders legs (shown in phantom) sprung out away from its adjacentsupport edge for re moval of the bolt holder from the support.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding partsthroughout the several views of the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, aholder of this invention is indicated in its entirety at 1 and shown inposition for holding a bolt of cloth 3 (shown in phantom) in an uprightdisplay position on a horizontal support or shelf generally indicated at5. The bolt holder 1 is formed of a single, continuous length ofrelatively stiff, resilient wire bent on itself to have two legs asindicated at 7A and 7B at an acute angle to one another substantially inthe same plane. The legs constitute the sides of the angle, and arounded bent portion 9 of the wire interconnecting the two legsconstitutes the vertex of the angle. For convenience, the legs 7A, 7Bmay be respectively referred to as the back leg and the front leg. Asshown in FIG. 2, the front and back legs lie substantially in the samevertical plane, and as shown in FIG. 3 the back leg 7A is inclinedupwardly and toward the front from support 5 at an angle of about 55with re spect to the horizontal and the front leg 78 is generallyvertical (as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,272,345). Generally, a bolt of cloth 3is held in an upright display position by inserting the legs 7A, 7Bbetween the layers of cloth 1 l and the mandrel 13 about which the clothis wrapped.

The support means 5 is shown to comprise two parallel horizontal bars 15and 17 of square cross section, but it will be understood that thesupport or shelf could be a solid shelf, for example. Each of legs 7A,7B has a foot, generally indicated at 19, formed at its free end fromthe above-mentioned length of wire, these feet being slidably engageablewith the oppositely facing edge portions 15A, 17A of the bars 15 and 17for holding the bolt holder 1 on the support, for preventing tipping ofthe bolt holder laterally with respect to the plane of the legs, and forpermitting; angling of the bolt holder relative to the edges of thesupport in a manner that will appear.

As best shown in FIG. 3, the legs 7A, 78 extend downwardly and outwardlyto the outer edges 15A, 17A of the support bars 15, 17. The back leg 7Ais bent as indicated at 21 whereby the free end of leg 7A meets thesupport at a substantially steeper slope than the remaining portion ofthe leg. Each foot 19 comprises a connecting portion 23 of wire bentfrom the free end of each leg 7A, 7B to extend inwardly in the plane ofthe legs toward the opposite leg. A lateral portion 25 (also referred toas a first portion) is bent from the inner end of the connecting portion23 to extend laterally outward from the plane of the legs. As shown inFIG. 2, the lateral portion 25 which is connected to leg 7A extendsperpendicularly outwardly from one side of the plane of the legs and thelateral portion 25 which is connected to leg 78 extends perpendicularlyoutwardly from the other side of the plane of the legs whereby one ofthe feet 19 projects out on one side of the plane of the legs and theother foot 19 projects out on the other side thereof. Another portion ofthe wire, referred to as a second portion 27, is bent to extend from theouter end of the lateral portion 25 to its corresponding edge 15A or 17Aof the support 5. A vertical portion 29 (also referred to as a thirdportion) of the wire is bent to extend down from the outer end of thesecond portion 27 and is en gageable with one of the oppositely facingedges 15A, 17A of the support. A lower portion 31 of the wire is bentfrom the lower end of the vertical portion 29 to extend back under andto be engageable with the lower surface of the support. The connectingportion 23, the lateral or first portion 25, and the second portion 27are all disposed to lie substantially in a horizontal plane and tocontact the upper surface of the support 5 when the bolt holder 1 isinstalled thereon. The lower portion 31 is spaced apart from these lastmentioned members a distance corresponding to the thickness of thesupport and is engageable with the lower surface thereof. The second andthird portions 27 and 29 and the lower portion 31 are disposed to lie inthe same vertical plane, and form a C-shaped clip preferably having aclose fit on the edges A, 17A.

The bolt holder is so dimensioned that, when in its unstressedcondition, the portions 29 of the two feet are spaced a distancesomewhat less that the spacing of the outer edges 15A, 17A of bars 15and 17. The legs 7A and 7B are adapted to be sprung apart as illustratedin phantom in FIG. 3 for being applied to or removed from the bars 15and 17. The bolt holder 1 may be applied to the bars in a position suchas shown for one of the bolt holders in FIGS. 1 and 2 with the plane oflegs 7A, 7B perpendicular to the bars, or in a position such as shownfor the other bolt holder in FIGS. 1 and 2 with the plane of the legsdiagonal to the bars. In either position, the C-shaped clip portions 27,29, 31 of the feet of the legs 7A, 78 hold the bolt holder on the bars,and portions 25 of the wire prevent tipping of the bolt holder one wayor the other. The C-shaped clip portions are preferably formed to gripthe bars with sufficient friction to hold the holder in the positionwith its plane perpendicular to the bars despite the spring tendency ofthe legs tending to bring their lower ends closer together, but, in anyevent, the weight of the bolt of cloth generally causes sufficientfrictional engagement of portions 25 of the wire with the tops of thebars to hold the holder in the stated right-angle position. Variousdiagonal positions of the holder are attainable, for various displaypositions exposing one broad side of the bolt of cloth. The bolt ofcloth may also be angled forward as at B in FIG. 3 of US. Pat. No.3,272,345.

As shown in FIG. 3, the holder may be readily removed on the supportbars 15, 17 by grasping the legs 7A, 7B and spreading them apart fromone another until feet 19 are clear of the support bars and then liftingthe holder clear of the support. The bolt holders are installed on thesupport bars by reversing this procedure.

The one-piece construction of the bolt holders 1 of this inventionpermits the holders to be rapidly and economically fabricated byconventional wire forming machinery without separate manufacturing stepsfor securing the feet to the holder.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of theinvention are achieved and other advantageous results attained.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

What is claimed is:

1. A holder for holding bolts of cloth or the like in a generallyupright display position on a generally horizontal support means, saidholder being formed of a single length of relatively stiff, resilientwire bent on itself to have two legs at an acute angle to one anothersubstantially in the same plane, the legs constituting the sides of theangle, and having a bent portion interconnecting the two legsconstituting the vertex of said angle, each leg having means formed atits free end, which constitutes its lower end, slidably engageable withone of two oppositely facing edge portions of said support means forholding said bolt holder upright on said support means, for preventingtipping of said bolt holder laterally with respect to the plane of saidlegs, and for permitting angling of said bolt holder relative to saidsupport means, said means comprising a first portion of the wireextending out from the plane of'the legs engageable with an uppersurface of said support means, a second portion of the wire bent toextend from the outer end of said first portion to the edge of saidsupport means, a third portion of the wire bent to extend down from theouter end of said second portion and engageable with one of saidoppositely facing edges of said support means, and a lower portion ofthe wire extending back from the lower end of said third portion toextend back under and to be engageable with the lower surface of saidsupport means, whereby the bolt holder may be positioned with its planegenerally at right angles to said edge portions of the support means ordiagonally with respect thereto.

2. A bolt holder as set forth in claim 1 wherein said first portion ofone of said lower end means extends perpendicularly out from the planeof the legs on one side thereof and said first portion of the other ofsaid lower end means extends perpendicularly out from the plane of thelegs on the other side thereof so as to prevent tipping of the holderlaterally with respect to the plane of said legs.

3. A bolt holder as set forth in claim 1 wherein each said lower endmeans further comprises a connecting portion of the wire bent from thelower end of its respective leg to extend back in the plane of the legstoward the other leg, said first portion being bent from the inner endof said connecting portion.

4. A bolt holder as set forth in claim 3 wherein said legs extenddownwardly from said vertex to be engageable with the outer edgeportions of said support means with said connecting portion of eachmeans extending back in the plane of the legs from the leg from whichthe same plane, said third portion being bent down to lie along theouter edge of said support means, and said lower portion being bent fromthe lower end of said third portion to extend back from the outer edgeportion of said support means, said lower member and said second portionbeing in the same vertical plane.

* i I I 1k

1. A holder for holding bolts of cloth or the like in a generallyupright display position on a generally horizontal support means, saidholder being formed of a single length of relatively stiff, resilientwire bent on itself to have two legs at an acute angle to one anothersubstantially in the same plane, the legs constituting the sides of theangle, and having a bent portion interconnecting the two legsconstituting the vertex of said angle, each leg having means formed atits free end, which constitutes its lower end, slidably engageable withone of two oppositely facing edge portions of said support means forholding said bolt holder upright on said support means, for preventingtipping of said bolt holder laterally with respect to the plane of saidlegs, and for permitting angling of said bolt holder relative to saidsupport means, said means comprising a first portion of the wireextending out from the plane of the legs engageable with an uppersurface of said support means, a second portion of the wire bent toextend from the outer end of said first portion to the edge of saidsupport means, a third portion of the wire bent to extend down from theouter end of said second portion and engageable with one of saidoppositely facing edges of said support means, and a lower portion ofthe wire extending back from the lower end of said third portion toextend back under and to be engageable with the lower surface of saidsupport means, whereby the bolt holder may be positioned with its planegenerally at right angles to said edge portions of the support means ordiagonally with respect thereto.
 2. A bolt holder as set forth in claim1 wherein said first portion of one of said lower end means extendsperpendicularly out from the plane of the legs on one side thereof andsaid first portion of the other of said lower end means extendsperpendicularly out from the plane of the legs on the other side thereofso as to prevent tipping of the holder laterally with respect to theplane of said legs.
 3. A bolt holder as set forth in claim 1 whereineach said lower end means further comprises a connecting portion of thewire bent from the lower end of its respective leg to extend back in theplane of the legs toward the other leg, said first portion being bentfrom the inner end of said connecting portion.
 4. A bolt holder as setforth in claim 3 wherein said legs extend downwardly from said vertex tobe engageable with the outer edge portions of said support means withsaid connecting portion of each means extending back in the plane of thelegs from the leg from which it is bent toward the other leg, said firstportion being bent from said connecting portion and extendingperpendicularly outwardly from the plane of the legs, said secondportion being bent perpendicular to the first portion and extendingoutwardly therefrom to the outer edge of said support means, saidconnecting portion, said first portion, and said second portion lying inthe same plane, said third portion being bent down to lie along theouter edge of said support means, and said lower portion being bent fromthe lower end of said third portion to extend back from the outer edgeportion of said support means, said lower member and said second portionbeing in the same vertical plane.